Coastal Gateway Regional Economic Development Alliance (CGEDA) held an Existing Industry Appreciation Summit at the Monroeville Water Works Convention Center on Tuesday, October 9th. Read more in our

featured article!

Louisiana-Pacific is making plans to restart its shuttered Clarke County oriented strand board plant in the second quarter of 2013, L-P Vice President of OSB Jamie Barnes said in early November.

In an earnings call to investors November 6th, L-P CEO Curt Stevens detailed the company's finances, including total sales of $468 million for the third quarter of 2012, 33 percent higher than sales of a year ago.

Barnes said the company has said it would seriously consider restarting the mill when housing starts reached 850,000. They were 872,000 in September. "As a result we are putting plans in place to restart idled capacity," Barnes said. Barnes said while plans are progressing they could still change.

He said the presidential election is not so much a factor as the national "financial cliff" issues that must be resolved by early 2013 by the administration and the Congress. Those serious issues must be positively resolved, he said.

L-P has been advertising 17 salaried positions and has made eight job offers. Hiring for hourly positions could start in the fourth quarter of this year, he said.

L-P is looking at a total employment of 135 for the mill, about what employment was before it closed in 2008 because of the economic slump after having only been in operation for a few months.

The OSB milll is rated to produce 750 million feet of OSB and plans are to start off with 250 to 300 million and to slowly ramp up production, Barnes said.

Cox, Jim. "L-P tells plans to restart OSB mill in second quarter 2013". The South Alabamian (Jackson) 8 November 2012, Page 3A.  

Mercifully, the elections are over and we are at that delicate point where campaigning transitions into governing. That is the challenge that confronts those candidates that were successful. I have admiration for all individuals that sought public office. The sacrifices necessary to be a public servant are extraordinary and I am thankful for those men and women.  Whether successful or not, they invested significant resources and we should acknowledge their willingness to lead our communities. 

During the campaigns, there was a single theme that was continuously echoed throughout this region, the state and even the country - Jobs!  That promise of effective economic development resonated with the electorate and provides a mandate for our officials to move forward and strengthen our regional economy.  I spoke to several candidates and while they all noted the need for economic development, each had a different perspective regarding the keys to success.  Some recognized the need for comprehensive workforce development through improved education and coordination between our schools and industries.  Others are committed to improving infrastructure in preparation for future economic development opportunities.  Many were confident that being able to provide aggressive incentive packages to prospective companies is the key to success. Several were passionate about meeting with prospective companies both domestically and internationally to market their community's winning business climate.  There were as many strategies as there were candidates.

The good news is that all those candidates were correct!  Workforce development, adequate infrastructure, developed sites, effective financial incentives, and an aggressive marketing effort are all critical in the creation of a successful economic development process.  The issue is not having one single "right" strategy. The issue is creating a long term process that includes all of the critical variables.  Many communities that appear to experience "overnight" success have been perfecting their process for years. When opportunities arose those communities were able to successfully execute their process.

In recognition of the importance of developing an economic development process and the key role that public officials play in economic development, Coastal Gateway is hosting two Elected Officials Economic Development Orientations.  The purpose of these events is to (1) ensure that our collective efforts are consistent and complementary and (2) create the best environment for accomplishing our common goal of creating jobs and prosperity for the citizens of the region and generations to come.  

One of our goals at the CGEDA is to have everyone in our region know who we are and what we do. That includes knowing our board members. Because our board is constantly growing, we will continue highlighting board members in Gateway News, so that you will know who is representing the region. This month, we would like to introduce Mayor Terri Carter.   

I, Terri Lynn Busby Carter was born in Orlando, Florida.  I graduated from Osceola High School in Kissimmee and attended Troy State University.

Prior to marrying William R. Carter III in 1996, I worked in the tourist industry in Orlando / Kissimmee dealing with British tourists.

I became the Mayor of Repton in April of 2004.  Three people were appointed to the Repton Town Council by Governor Bob Riley, I being one of them.  At the first meeting, I was then voted to be Mayor.  I still currently hold this position and will finish my 3^rd term in 2016.

While we, in Repton, have accomplished many things, our biggest and ongoing accomplishment is our fight to save our area from becoming the largest dumping ground in the USA.  Not only has our community stood united but we have gone far behind the "not in my backyard" attitude.  Through the generosity and selflessness of many, we have educated ourselves on what garbage means to us and to our entire STATE.  What we realized is that this issue does not just affect us but the Great State of Alabama as a whole.  Therefore, we choose to work hard to try and change the laws governing this issue while we continue to battle our own dump litigation. 

During all this, we have managed to pay down the debt left by the previous administration of approx. $150,000.00, weathered Hurricane Ivan (prior to dump issue) and continue to work on our day to day business trying to move our little town forward successfully.  We are working on visual perception at the moment since we have a high traffic count on Federal Hwy 84 and State Highway 41. 

We are very proud to have a community where we all work together well.  I always say, "WE eat and pray together and that makes us proudly say, there's no place like home!"

I was appointed to the Conecuh County Reservoir Management Area Authority in July 2009.  At the first meeting, I was voted in as Chairman. This is a lake project that will be approx. 2700 acres with 62 miles of shoreline.  The dam will be located on Murder Creek just north of County Road 20 in Conecuh County. 

In July of 2009, we were still in Phase I of the Environmental Impact Study.  Due to the political climate, this study has moved at a slow pace.  However, with the change in Conecuh County politics, we hope the next 4 stages will move rather quickly.  We are currently in Phase II which is the most crucial phase.  This is the phase where the Army Corps of Engineers will say YES or NO to the project.  We hope to have this project finished by the end of the year and submitted to the Corps.  We feel that we may receive a decision from them early next year.  Assuming that we receive a YES from the Corps, we anticipate Phases III-V to take approx. 1-2 years. 

I feel extremely positive about all that is transpiring for our region and look forward to 2013!

BOARDS & AFFILIATIONS

From approx. 1997-2002 I served on Annunciation Catholic Churches Parish Council.  I currently serve on the following boards; Conecuh County Reservoir Management Area Authority (Lake Project) - Chairman, National Society-Daughters of the American Revolution - Chapter Chairman of Committee's with National Recognition - National Defense Chairman and American Heritage & Conservation Committee Chairman, Repton Restoration Society - Past President, Present Executive Board Member, FEMA Board of Conecuh County as a Catholic Representative.

Alabama ranked first for competitive labor costs and fourth overall

Area Development, the leading publication covering site selection and facility planning, has announced the results of its 2012 Top States for Doing Business survey of leading location consultants. According to the results, the top-10 states for doing business are Texas, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, North Carolina, Louisiana, Tennessee, Indiana, Mississippi, and Oklahoma in that order.

 Area Development asked a select group of highly respected location consultants who work with a nationwide client base to name their top-5 state choices in 14 site selection categories, as follows:

 Business Environment
* Overall cost of doing business
* Corporate tax environment
* Incentives programs
* Cooperative state government
* Speed of permitting
* Access to capital and project funding
 
 Labor Climate
* Availability of skilled labor
* Competitive labor costs
* Workforce development programs
 
 Infrastructure/Global Access
* Rail & highway accessibility
* Certified sites and shovel-ready programs
* Competitive utility rates
* Distribution/logistics hub access
 
 Economy
* Leading in the economic recovery
 
States were ranked in each of the 14 categories above based on the number of times they were named as a "top-5" choice by the responding consultants. The top-5 states were each mentioned in at least 8 of 14 categories.
 
For the third consecutive year, Alabama was among the top five states for doing business. Alabama was also first for competitive labor costs and near the top of the list for its workforce development programs.

A full review of this year's Top States for Doing Business is presented in the Fall 2012 issue of Area Development magazine.  To read more about Alabama's rankings, please click here.

Black, left and Norris at the Great Wall of China. Photo courtesy of Mike Qualls.

Monroeville and Monroe County were well represented in the second Alabama trade mission to China in 2012.

Kellie Andrews and Robin Fenton, representatives from BEST Robotics, Inc., recently presented a program that inspires students to pursue careers in engineering, science, technology, and math to representatives from Georgia Pacific, including CEO Kelvin Hill and Public Relations Director Terry Hardaway, and the Choctaw County Board of Education, including Superintendent of Education Sue Moore and Career Tech Director Dawn Dixon.

To stimulate interest in the BEST Robotics program, GP presented funds totaling $2,500 to be used for transportation for a group of students in grades 7 through 10 to attend the Best Robotics competition at the Mitchell Center on the USA Campus in Mobile. The students will also tour the Engineering Department on the USA Campus during the trip.

In addition, the funds will support activities related to teacher training and other robotics project related expenses. BEST Robotics will supply all materials for the robots at no cost to the schools.

Upon returning from the trip, the students will present their experiences to their classmates. Assisted by teachers and parent volunteers, Choctaw County schools will form their first team to compete in the Best Robotics Competition in the year 2013.

BEST was the foundational program that spurred the launching of 19 engineering academies across Alabama as part of the Engineering Academy Initiative for Alabama.

The project is part of an effort to bridge the skills gap between education and industry -- a primary focus of the educational and industrial communities in Choctaw County.

Campbell. "Local students to attend BEST Robotics event in Mobile". The Choctaw Sun-Advocate (Butler) 24 October, 2012.

The Coastal Gateway Regional Economic Development Alliance Facebook Page is another good opportunity to help us keep in touch with you. Here you can view photos, happenings of the Alliance throughout the year and regional events as they relate to economic development.

There are almost 120 members on our page so far.  We encourage you to join in and help spread the news about the Facebook Page.  If you would like us to post specific information or include pictures from your region, please contact info@cgeda.net.

To visit or join the page: click here.

CGEDA is also on Twitter! Follow us on Twitter to keep up to date on news in the region! To follow us on Twitter: click here.